Project Overview

A great way to clean up your outdoor area is by creating a feeding station for your dog. This one will keep your pet food and water neat and tidy and it’s really easy to make. Then when it’s not in use, it slides away under the dog bed to keep the bowls and mess out of your way.

How to get a dent-free finish when hammering

If you need to hammer a nail into wood, here’s a simple way to avoid leaving ugly dents in the woodwork. First hammer the nail until it’s almost in, then place a thin piece of cardboard on top of the nail and keep hammering. That way the nail goes in easily and there are no ugly dents.

Step 1. Measure and mark the centre of the ply

First, cut the sheet of plywood into a piece that measures 320mm x 585 mm. Next, find the centre of the 320mm x 585mm form ply. Measure 160mm down the length to mark the centre. Then use a piece of timber as a straight edge to draw a centre line across the width of the board.

Step 2. Find the centre point of the bowls

Place the dog bowls where you’d like them on the centre line. Put a combination square on the edge of the ply under the bowl. Then mark the centre point for each bowl on the centre line by lifting the bowl.

Step 3. Drill holes for the router

With your 5mm drill bit, drill out part of the centre points that you have marked on the board. Then drill two additional holes either side of that. Use chipboard screws to fix the ply off in these two places, ensuring that they are out of the way of the router. This will secure the board while you use the router.

Step 4. Measure the distance for the router arm

Our large bowl is 242mm in diameter, so subtract the width of the lip measurement, ours was 10mm and then halve the total. We will set the router arm to this measurement of 117mm. Our smaller bowl measured 203mm in diameter, so subtracting the lip measurement and halving it meant the remaining measurement was 97mm.

Step 5. Cut out the circles

With the router in position, set the depth so it just goes through the board. We’ve placed a scrap piece of timber under the benchtop so that the router doesn’t cut into our workbench. Cut the hole for the large bowl with your router. We used a trimmer to cut for the smaller bowl.

Step 6. Start making the frame

Step 7. Measure, mark and cut the other timber

For your second cuts, measure, mark and mitre the other ends of the four lengths of timber. A good tip when cutting your second mitre is to keep your pencil line visible so that you can allow for error.

Step 8. Cut out the handles

Square a line across the centre of the two faces of timber for the side panels. Clamp the timber to the workbench and drill two holes in each face with the 32mm spade bit about 100mm from the ends. Draw a pencil line across the tops and the bottoms of these circles. Then use a jigsaw to cut along the lines to create your handles.

Step 9. Secure the frame

Lay out the frame, making sure the side panels match with the ply top and square off nicely. Once you have them in position, apply PVA glue and fix them all off using the nail gun. Then fix off the top panel to the frame using a nail gun.

Step 10. Putty and sand the feeding station

Putty over the nail holes and edges to fill any gaps. Then give it a light sand with an orbital sander or with 120-grit sandpaper. If the feeding station is going to be outside or have water in it, it’s a good idea to seal the wood with a varnish.

Step 11. Your feeding station is finished

Now it’s time to find a good spot for your feeding station. Fill up the bowl with your dog’s favourite food and water and they’ll be happy. Once they’ve finished eating you can slide the feeding station under the bed, neat and tidy and out of the way

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